Charges are filed in kidnapping of woman

Brian E. Stidham, 50, faces charges of kidnapping, first-degree robbery, tampering with a motor vehicle, assault and two counts of armed criminal action. The victim used her cellphone to notify authorities of her location in rural mid-Missouri.

Police arrested him in Benton County, Mo., after the victim used her cellphone to call 911 repeatedly, which allowed authorities to find her location.

The incident began Monday morning in east Kansas City after Stidham asked the woman for a ride to a nearby convenience store, according to court documents.

Once in the car, Stidham allegedly brandished a gun and ordered her to drive onto the highway. They headed south. After leaving the Kansas City area, he ordered her to stop. He changed places with her in the car and handed her a pill that he ordered her to take, according to court documents.

He allegedly told the woman that the pill was like a “date rape” drug and threatened several times to shoot her. At one point he ordered her to show him her breasts, then he used a cellphone to take a picture, according to the allegations.

After he was found by authorities, Stidham told police that he gave the woman a pill and took the picture so it would look like they were having fun at a party, according to court documents.